Every year, my school hosts trips for the students to go on. There are various trips all over the world that students can choose from and this year, I had the opportunity to choose the Asia Society in Houston. Visiting the Asia Society was an amazing experience for me, as I got to learn about Asian art, religion, and food!

The main countries that the Houston Asia Society focuses on are China, Korea, Japan, India, and Vietnam. However, they also showcase events about Middle Eastern countries such as the Lebanon Folkloric Dance that the Asia Society hosted recently. The building contains many exhibits that present facts about each country such as the languages spoken, food eaten, and art/clothing worn in that region. The main goal for us at the Asia Society was to learn how to interview different restaurant owners, store owners, and religious leaders regarding their stories and opinions on the Asian part of Houston. We also were able to interview customers and ask about their experience in certain restaurants or visiting certain temples and shrines.

We not only interviewed others about Asian culture, but we also had the opportunity to explore Asian culture ourselves. For example, every day for lunch the Asia society took us to a different Asian restaurant. We went to Indian, Korean, Vietnamese, and even Chinese Hot Pot Restaurants. It was very enjoyable to try new foods I had never eaten before. They all tasted so good!

We also had the opportunity to learn about various religions in Asia. We went to the BAPS Hindu Temple in Houston and explored the fundamentals of reincarnation as well as took a tour of the temple during hours of worship. I loved seeing the ontricate designs in the stone walls of the temple, as they creatively showed all of the Hindu stories that Hindus believe in. We also visited the Tzu Chi Buddhist Temple, in which we learned about the teachings of the Buddha, consisting of meditation, peace, and tranquility. Our supervisor gave us a tour of the temple, in which we were able to see the meditation room and even some classrooms for children to learn Chinese. The last place we visited was the Tien Ho Chinese Temple, where we got to explore a scene of traditional statues that are used for worship. All the temples we visited are experiences I will never forget.

Our supervisors also taught us different drumming beats that each Asian country plays during special holidays. We all got to re-create theme beats in a drum simulation as we worked together to try to stay in sync.

My favorite part of the Asia Society had to have been learning how ancient patterns on Kimonos were made. We learned that hand-cut templates were made out of a special kind of waterproof tree bark that allowed the stencil to repeatedly get wet and sustain itself for years before it started to break down. First, a stencil was cut out of the waterproof paper. Then dye is used to dye the fabric and create a signature color. A tree resin is then applied to the stencil for it to be stamped onto the Kimono. The Kimono with the tree resin pattern is then soaked in a different dye color and then dried. What remains is the tree resin which comes off with water when rinsed. The result is a beautiful authentic Asian Kimono. There are various kinds of kimono templates for each season, as the ancient Chinese believed that clothes should symbolize the seasons as they reflect the principles of Yin and Yang. For example, patterns with snow and bare trees symbolized the winter while flowers and water patterns symbolized spring and summer. After we had learned about these kimono patterns, I had the opportunity to make my pattern using a piece of paper. I enjoyed this project as it introduced me to a new kind of art that I hadn’t ever done or even heard about before.

Overall, spending time at the Asia Society here is Houston was an amazing experience and I would love to volunteer or visit again!